Sadie's POV

As I awaited my opportunity to make good on my plan to spring Daryl from whatever little shithole these assholes were keeping him in, I took it upon myself to find where Negan had taken the kid off to.

It didn't take me too long to come across a door that looked just a little nicer than the rest, presumably the bastard's bedroom.

I scoffed to myself as I put my ear up to the door to get an idea of just what kind of bullshit he was spewing off to him.

The one good thing about this bastard's cocky, self righteous attitude about himself was that it made his voice just a little too easy to hear from the other side of a door.

….even before he started shouting about whatever he'd bullied the kid into showing him.

"CHRIST! That is disgusting! No wonder you cover that up. Have you seen it? I mean have you looked in the mirror? That is gross as hell! I can see your socket."

I took what sounded like the kid genuinely starting to breakdown over the bastard's remarks as my cue to intervene with a couple good, hard BANGS against the door.

"...come in." He called out somewhat hesitantly.

"Like I needed your permission!" I scoffed, practically springing the door open as I barged in.

I lowered my voice, more sympathetically yet firmly as I redirected my attention to the kid.

"He bothering you, kid- ah" I caught myself midsentence. "Carl, I mean…..right?"

He looked back at me, not saying anything but nodded slightly.

"I nodded back. "...Is he bothering you?"

"He's fine, we're just havin some- "

I moved my hand up aggressively, cutting the bastard off mid sentence.

"AH! Was I talking to you?! Hmm? Did you change your name to Carl in the time it took me to enjoy some of your fine booze with those even finer women, who are so far out of your league that said league is a dot to you, and walk to that door?! WELL?!"

He jumped slightly at the last part before just shaking his head.

"That's what I thought…" I nodded, lowering my voice again as I turned back to Carl.

"...Is he?"

He just looked at me and shrugged. "...Just forget it."

"Whatever you say, kid." I patted him gently on the shoulder, to which he flinched slightly, as I made my way over to snatch a piece of food off the bastard's tray. "...Mmmm...these are delicious, by the way."

He nodded, chuckling softly as he looked down at his watch.

"Take some with you then." He offered, nodding towards the door as he stood up. "...it should be ready."

Carl looked up at him suspiciously. "...What should?"

"...The iron." He replied with an even more suspicious, sinister looking grin across his face.

Carl and I both exchanged looks with each other before following him out the door.

"Stay behind me." I whispered.

He led us back out to the balcony area he'd bragged to us about before.

….And just like before, every single one of them stopped dead in their tracks to take a knee for the bastard.

All of them, anyway, except for one who appeared to be tied to a chair and considerably…...understandably, more scared.

"You know the deal!" He announced. "...what's about to happen is gonna be hard to watch. I don't wanna do it! I wish I could just ignore the rules and let it slide, but I can't! ….Why?"

"The rules keep us alive!" The crowd all clamored in unison.

"That….is…..right!" He called back, oh so proudly. "We survive. We provide security to others, we bring civilization back to this world! We are...The Saviors."

I made a point to snort audibly as I laughed out loud at his audacity call themselves that.

He paused briefly, as if he might turn around and say something about it, but just went on about his little spiel to these so-called savior minions of his.

"...but we can't do that without rules. Rules are what make it all work! ….I know it's not easy, but there is always work, there is always a COST! Here, if you try to SKIRT that, if you try to CUT THAT CORNER…." He chuckled, so damn proud of what he was about to say.

"...then it is the iron for you!" He glanced briefly around to the crowd as he crossed through the area. "...on your feet."

"Heeeere comes the Kool-aaaiid" I sang just audibly enough for myself and the kid to hear.

"D!" He declared, somewhat abruptly, with a chuckle as Dwight held out what was clearly a scalding hot iron that he'd just pulled out of the furnace for him as he slipped on a glove to take it from him.

"What a fucking lap dog." I scoffed, watching as Negan proceeded to carry said iron over to the man tied to the chair.

"Mark…." He sighed, as if he meant it genuinely. "I am so sorry, but it is what it is."

The surrounding crowd all watched on in horror, the kid included, as the bastard held the scalding iron to the side of the man's face til he passed out….and pissed out, for that matter…..all over the floor beneath him.

"Ahh, see? That wasn't so bad, now, was it?" He chuckled in his little glory til he noted the small puddle. "Jesus….he pissed himself." He shook his head, briefly to himself, before turning back to Daryl who was apparently standing close by.

"Clean that up." He then waved his cue for another of his minions to come to the scene. "Doc...I'm all done, do your thing."

I tried to offer some smidge of comfort to the still horrified kid, patting him over the shoulder as we watched a doctor in a lab coat came over to check the man out.

The kid just looked at me, not flinching so much as he had before, but still eyeing me just as suspiciously.

"Well….the pussy passed out!" The bastard continued boasting. "...but it's settled now, we're square. Everything's cool! Let Mark's face be a daily reminder to him and to everyone that the rules matter."

"...and yet it's still a face better looking than your ugly mug." I interjected with a smirk.

He just looked at me briefly, scoffing as he continued on with his little ramble.

"...I hope we all learned something today. Because I don't ever…..wanna have to do that again!

He walked back over to me and the kid, ignoring the little smirk I still held as he leaned in to whisper into the kid's ear.

"Crazy shit, huh? You must think I'm a lunatic." He chuckled.

"I've seen worse!" I interjected, much to his amusement.

"Was I talking to you?" He chuckled, oh so smugly, as if he thought he was doing something by mocking my earlier threats.

"Did I ask if you were?" I replied, visibly unamused as I folded my arms across my chest.

He pretended to ignore that remark as he turned back to the kid.

"Come on kid, let's figure out what to do with you."

"Let's do that!" I mocked giddily, smirking as I followed the bastard just ahead of the kid.

The bastard brought us back to the same bedroom, sitting back in his same spot as the kid took his original seat across from him while I stood just behind him.

"Can I wrap up my face now?" He finally asked, disappointingly meekly.

"Of course you can." I scoffed before the bastard could say anything. "...you don't need this asshole's permission."

He looked up at me, then back to Negan, but didn't do anything further.

Negan just shot me a glare, which I responded to with my own, before he turned to look back at the kid.

"...leave it off." He simply stated, firmly.

I stormed over, grabbed him back by the back of his jacket collar, and whipped a knife off my belt to hold just in front of his throat as I looked back at the kid who somehow seemed equally startled by the move.

"I said you can put it back on." I reaffirmed, still firmly yet considerably more gently.

He nodded, cautiously taking the bandage off the table between them and wrapping it back around that side of his face. "...thanks."

I nodded back. "You're welcome, Carl."

He gave a little half smile as I jerked the back of Negan's collar back til he was looking me in the eye.

"You gonna behave now?"

That damned smug grin returning to the bastard's face when he answered.

"Yes, Ma'am."

"Cockyness won't help your case, asshole!" I practically spat back at him as I released my grip, slowly taking my knife away from his throat and placing it back on my belt. "...would've thought you'd have learned that by now."

He just chuckled again at that, glancing between me and the kid as he stood up.

"How bout we go for a ride?"

The kid and I both exchanged looks with each other as the bastard motioned for us to follow him back out the door, the kid only following behind after I did.

Once we arrived at the big cargo truck he led us to, I hung back as I watched him urge the kid into the driver's seat while he took the passenger side.

"Sure you won't come with us?" Plenty of room for one more." He boasted.

"On what? Your lap?" I scoffed, noting the small space. "Anyway, I got my own ride."

"Suit yourself." He chuckled, slapping the outside of the truck. "Daryl!"

Daryl, who seemed to be almost as much of a fucking lapdog as Dwight by this point, came trudging up to the scene at his call. Though, not without shooting me glare as well.

"You seem worried, so I'm taking the kid home." The bastard claimed.

"If you do anything to him- "

"Dwight!" The bastard cut off abruptly, calling out to his other precious little lapdog minion who came rushing even more quickly onto the scene.

"Daryl needs a timeout, put him back in his box for a while."

I shot a look back to Daryl as Dwight dragged him back off by the back of that god forsaken sack he was still being forced to wear.

I made a point to watch the direction he was taking him off to while Carl and Negan drove off, hanging back until the two of them were very clearly out of sight and I could start to make my move.

I ended up following them, just far enough behind that neither one seemed to see me…..or at least Dwight. If Daryl did see me, he sure wasn't making it obvious.

I watched as Dwight slammed the door shut behind Daryl, shoving some keys into his pockets as he went.

When he was finally out of sight, I took one more precautionary glance around the vicinity, took the note that Sherry'd given me, and scribbled my own note to Daryl on the back of it.

"I know what you're thinking.

I don't need to look in your eyes to see it to know it. I wouldn't trust me either.

Kill me later though. I'll even hand over the damn machete, myself.

Just take the opportunity first.

You're not the petty little lapdog Dwight is, and I have no intention of letting that change. For either of us…...even if you do kill me.

-Sadie….who can't believe she's writing this either."

I slammed the side of my fist against the door to grab his attention, pressing my ear against it to hear him scurry to the front of it, before slipping it under the door to him and standing to my feet to get to work on the lock.

It took me all of another two minutes, probably less, to break the lock open and see Daryl standing before me. The note, still in his hand, he shot me another glare...though one that was somewhat more curious than before.

"...the hell's in it for you?" He scoffed, still trying to process who was really standing in front of him and why.

"Would you believe me if I did tell you?"

"Should I?" He asked instead, though more rhetorically intended.

"I asked first."

He scoffed at that. "Probably not."

"Likewise." I sighed, taking another glance round. "Just find a room and change out of that shit before someone sees you. I'll stand guard."

He shot another glare at me, but followed me anyway.

The first acceptable, empty, room we came up on appeared to be another bedroom.

One that was just big enough to be both a bedroom and a small, decently equipped kitchen.

Upon making certain it was clear, Daryl rushed in ahead of me, opening the drawer to a dresser that stood near the bed as I continued to stand guard.

"Make it quick. I'll shut this and let you know if anyone's coming.

He scoffed again, but continued to rifle through the drawer as I shut the door behind me.

He took all of just another two minutes before he came back out wearing a flannel over a plain t shirt that looked even worse for wear, complete with a rugged looking baseball cap.

I snickered a little as I looked him up and down. "...well, I suppose it's somethin."

I just shrugged off the even less amused look he shot me for that remark as I took a pipe I'd found in the meantime and tossed it to him. "Catch!"

"...thanks." He scoffed somewhat hesitantly as he caught it.

"Don't talk, just follow." I urged, leading him toward the way I'd come in.

Once we were out, he rushed ahead of me to what must've been his own motorcycle from before this shithole.

Just as I'd managed to hotwire the one just beside it, one of Negan's other minions was stepping outside.

Briefly distracted by seeing me first, it only took him another moment to recognize Daryl and what was going on.

"Woah…" He panicked, dropping the sandwich he'd been snacking on as he put his hands up to surrender. "...Woah….it's cool, I swear. Buddy, you can walk right out that gate there….and I won't say anything to anybody….."

I glared at him, looking back at Daryl who was also glaring back at him as he started to advance towards him.

"...listen, I'm- I'm just trying to get by...just like you- "

I stopped him mid sentence, however, with an arrow straight through his neck and nodded for Daryl to finish him off as I retrieved my arrow.

"Your turn."

He wasted no time after that, hauling off and beating the man to his eventual death, stopping only at the sound of a familiar voice entering the scene.

"Daryl….Sadie."

I looked up, just as Daryl did, to find that the man who'd called himself Jesus back at The Hilltop was standing just mere feet in front of us.

Daryl seemed briefly confused by how Jesus apparently knew me by name as well, but seemed to shrug it off as he started up his bike.

"I got the keys, let's go."

I looked back at Jesus and then back to Daryl.

"Right behind ya."